No Time For Goodbyes
by Fae 206
Summary: (Future Set - 1st PPOV) When Satoshi was sixteen, he was diagnosed with an infection in his lungs. Having to stop his Pokemon journey and enjoy a year and a half of real life, Satoshi learns the depths of love and of friendship. When he dies, Pikachu accompanies him to the afterlife for an eternal journey. Both present time and flashbacks are written. Satoshi/Kasumi
1. Chapter 1

**No Time For Goodbyes**

**Chapter One**

I don't understand people at all. I don't understand these papers that they talk about either but I remember that night. Mom and Kasumi were both in the room when it happened and Takeshi was standing at the doorway trying to keep everyone else out. Those had been my friends for the longest time. No matter how many people joined us on our travels, those were our best and closest friends. Kasumi-san had come back a while ago and Takeshi visited from time to time as did all of our friends but Kasumi was living with us.

I'm not a stupid Pikachu. I've always been intelligent, agile, doing my best for Satoshi. I know that there are Pokemon who lose their owners and they are not all abandoned. That's the thing. Satoshi didn't abandon me, I don't think he did anyway. The humans say he died peacefully and in his sleep. They don't understand that he was holding me when he slipped away.

_Pikachu. You need to be strong, buddy. You need to go with Kasumi and be strong and brave for me. I love you, Pikachu._

I pause as I feel the tears reenter my eyes. They had tried to explain to me that there was no coming back this time for him. I'm supposed to leave with Kasumi-san, Satoshi gave her my Pokeball and everything but I don't want to leave him. I know that they have to put his body in a black bag and that he has a card on his toe. They say it was something bad in his lungs that was preventing him from breathing.

I'm an old Pikachu. I've been journeying with Satoshi for eight years, well we only journeyed for seven, we barely went out after that seventh year. The garden was nice. It was nice when we went to visit the different Pokemon but we never met any new friends to take back and I never battled. Satoshi was always too tired for that.

I turn back to his cold body and grab his hat before putting it on his head and snuggle up next to him. He's cold and stiff but I know it's okay. It's going to be okay. I sniff my tears back and in my mind think of ketchup. The happy memories when Satoshi gave me ketchup. I let my breathing slow down as I stay beside him and feel a glow around him. I snuggle closer to him and I look up. There's a Ghastly in here.

"I was attracted to the body," the Ghastly explains in a voice that only Pokemon can hear. I nod. I know that there will be other Pokemon soon to take his soul to the afterlife.

I blink up at Ghastly, "Take me too," I whisper, begging for the Pokemon to not separate us.

"Are you sure?" the other Pokemon asks and I nod. I want to continue to stay with Satoshi. I feel my breath stop in my chest but I'm happy. I close my eyes and I can see a new place, a new adventure. I look up and see that we're not in the human world anymore. The eighteen-year-old Satoshi isn't sick anymore. I grin up at him.

"Satoshi," I whisper with tears in my eyes and he looks at me and sees that there is something on _my_ foot.

"Pikachu," he laughs before looking at it. I turn to sniff it as well. "Died from a broken heart."

Satoshi gets down next to me and ruffles my fur. I grin back at him. "You didn't have to do that," he tells me and I shake my head. I didn't want to leave my trainer. Satoshi takes me into a hug and it doesn't hurt anymore, _he_ doesn't hurt anymore.

"Let's go explore, okay?" he asks as he picks me up and I can see the possibilities for new adventures.

I rub my head against his body, "As long as I'm with you," I tell him and he blinks down at me before smiling.

"I guess I can understand you now, buddy" he says and he doesn't look too shocked about it. I breathe in relief. He can understand me. I can understand him.

Let the adventure begin!


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: **First of all, this chapter all takes place in the past and second, I first started watching Pokemon in 1997 so I'm a huge fan of everything Johto (and Kanto) so that's why I choose to ship Kasumi and Satoshi. Also, I'm a huge Growlithe fan but that's just a little fact about myself.

**Chapter Two**

"Satoshi, honey," Mom tells me as I eat breakfast. I'm back in Pallet Town for a week or so to talk to a bunch of Pokemon enthusiasts about how you should follow your dreams but also to encourage them to do what Mom forced me to do and participate in an on the road education so I could at least learn basic principles of math and science. I've agreed to do this because Dr. Ohkido asked me to. I owe him a lot and I have some time between my studies. I've also done really well in this contest.

I watch Pikachu dump ketchup on a plate and turn to face my mother with unwavering eye contact being made. "Yes," I nod and I hear Mom sigh. She looks troubled.

"Darling, there's something that you should know," Mom says and I wipe my face with a napkin. I prepare myself for whatever she is going to say. It seems terrifyingly serious. "It's about your father."

I pause. Dad hasn't been part of my life, he couldn't be. I always thought that he had passed away and I want to be proud to be his son but it's hard to know much about him. I look at Mom and nod. I'm ready for whatever she has to tell me.

"Your father isn't dead," she tells me and I look at her. "Honey, there was an accident when you were a little boy. You know that sometimes there are unexplainable things in the world," she says and I have to admit that's true. I've seen Pokemon that I never thought I would ever meet. I've experienced partial death a number of times. Yes, if anyone should believe in the impossible then it's me.

"Okay," I reply slowly and Mom grabs her Mr. Mime and holds him in front of me. "Satoshi," she tells me slowly, "Your father turned into a Pokemon. _This_ is your father," she tells me and the Mr. Mime waves at me. I pale. What is she talking about? My father is a Mr. Mime. No….

"Da-aad?" I ask as I reach out for him and my stomach is turning over. My gut doesn't feel right but should it feel right when your dad has just been announced as a Pokemon.

Suddenly there is a beeping sound and I'm not sure what it is, it sounds like some kind of -

…..

…..

I roll onto the floor of my bedroom and feel the wood under my cheek. A dream. It was just some kind of bizarre dream. I see Pikachu coming over to me and he tilts his head down.

"Pikapi?" he asks and I groan. I thought I was beyond having strange dreams of my mother telling me that my dad is actually her Mr. Mime. I glance up at the clock as I remain on the floor, Pikachu is poking me now to make sure that I'm okay. There's still two more hours until I have to give my speech on what it is to be a Pokemon trainer. I push myself onto the bed and pull Pikachu into my arms. For six years we've been together. He really should count as my best friend.

"I'm fine," I tell Pikachu as I push myself up. Well, it should be time to get washed up and prepare for the demonstration to the kids who are waiting to start their journey. There's so much that I've been through which has been kept secret. If the world knew about that then they might even want me to speak to all of Japan about Pokemon.

I chuckle at the thought and gesture for Pikachu to get onto the bed as I get prepared. Out of all the things that have changed in these six years that I've been on my journey, my hat is still something that I want to keep hold of. I've lost it a few times but somehow it always came back to me. I smile to Pikachu as I put on my jacket. I'm glad that he's been healthy all of these years. Some Pokemon slow down when they get older but Pikachu is still as happy as always.

Pikachu jumps onto my shoulder and we share a smile before I make my way downstairs. I look at Mr. Mime a little suspiciously. I know it's not my dad in there but man, that dream was messed up on a number of levels.

"Are you going to get to the demonstration in time," Mom asks as she brings me breakfast. I smile at her, thankful for a homecooked meal. I squirt a little ketchup out for Pikachu before hearing the door open quickly and I look up. I knew that Takeshi was coming but I didn't know that he was already here.

"Hey, I brought them," he smiles and I blink as I look to the bag. He proudly walks forwards and puts the bag on the middle of the counter, "Enough jelly doughnuts to last us the entire day," he claims proudly and I look into the bag before laughing weakly.

"Uh, Takeshi," I tell him as I open the bag. Maybe he didn't open his eyes wide enough to inspect what was inside this bag because these are _not_ jelly doughnuts. "You do realize these are rice balls, don't you?" I ask him and Takeshi stares at me.

"They gave me the wrong thing again," he groans and I hear Pikachu laughing.

"Yeah," I shrug, "Who are you dealing with a racist cartoon dubbing company?"

At least we have the onigiri to last us through the day and depending on what kind of assortment is in that bag, it's going to be a lot better to sustain us than an entire bag of jelly doughnuts.

…..

…..

Satoshi has selected me for his demonstration, well he selected me and Greninja but I still think that my power is better. I have been with Satoshi the longest, I know what his commands are and I understand his strategies and tactics. I can outperform any other Pokemon. I look to the crowd that has gathered, all cheering us on.

I am a proud Pikachu and more than that, I am a Pikachu who has a trainer who loves me. There were many tragedies that we saw along the road to get this far but Satoshi has always tried to keep me safe and warm and happy. I am really thankful that I wasn't just passed off to someone who only cares about battling and would force me to go into that strange cramped space of a Pokeball.

"So," someone questions Satoshi and he pets me on the head, I look up at him curiously, "This Pikachu was the first Pokemon you ever received and has been with you through nearly all your battles as a trainer. Do you think that there's something special about the bond that you and your Pikachu share."

I smile as I look at Satoshi and say his name with a happy grin, he pets me again.

"Pikachu is like my best friend," he says honestly. "We've traveled with other people but whereas I could say goodbye to them and wish them well on their journeys, I would never be able to do the same thing to Pikachu. We're best buddies and of course that makes us a stronger team. I know how he's feeling and he understands how I am, that's what our biggest con-"

Satoshi starts coughing and I look at him nervously. People don't know this but he's been coughing like that a lot recently. It must be some kind of allergy. Takeshi talked about allergies before and how even Pokemon can get them. I hope it's that. The coughs kind of scare me.

"Are you okay?" the woman asks and without telling me before hand, Satoshi pulls me to his lap and wraps his arms around me. We share the heat but I wonder what he's doing. I look to him again.

"I am, yeah," he nods and I look out to the crowd. They seem very concerned about him. Mom seems the most concerned, it's as if she wants to come join us on the stage but she hasn't been invited up here.

"So, you were going to show us some of Pikachu's moves?" the woman asks and Satoshi stands up, placing me on the ground.

"Yeah," he says and as I watch him, he seems a bit paler than usual. He pushes a hand through his hair and laughs and I don't really understand what is going on. He leads me over to a sack where I'm supposed to perform my moves.

He tells me a few commands, like to use my tail and my electricity moves but then it stops and I stare at the sack. No sack can defeat me. I listen for the next move but I can't hear him. I have to wait though, I promised myself to make him proud.

It's at that point that I hear one word which makes my heart race.

'Fainted?'

I haven't fainted but as I turn back to see what they mean, I see Satoshi lying on the stage, face down and having trouble breathing. The woman puts him on his side and Mom immediately is up there as well as Takeshi trying to check on him. I have seen him die before but he always came back. I feel nervous, he can't leave me again, one day it will be the day when he doesn't come back.

I try to shake him but he's breathing, maybe he just needs to go to a Pokemon center.

…

…

_Can you stay with Takeshi for me? _

Those were the last words that Satoshi said to me. He woke up for only a little bit before falling asleep again and they took him away in an ambulance. I don't really know much about human Pokecenters, hopefully Mom and Takeshi do. Takeshi has handed me a small bottle of ketchup and he keeps petting me in the way he did when we travelled together.

He looks worried. Mom keeps pacing and I don't know why I can't be with him. They said something about an examination and only doctors in the room but I don't know why I can't be with him. I look up at Takeshi who is pale as well. Is he going to faint as well?

I try to settle down and then see Kasumi rush in, her face showing her panic.

"I came as soon as I heard," she tells Mom who hugs her. I wonder how many more of our friends are going to come here. I blink up at her, she sometimes can make Satoshi feel all better even if it is by yelling at him.

"Pikachu-Pi" I call out to her and she rushes over, lifting me up in her arms and pulling me close.

"Hey, Pikachu" she says in the warm and loving way that she always has. "I'm so glad to see you again. You must be so scared. I'm sure that Satoshi is okay, so you don't need to worry anymore," she says before looking to Takeshi. It feels like the old days when all four of us were together. "How is he?"

"It's not looking too good," Takeshi says and I don't understand. Us Pokemon heal fast especially when taken to a center. Satoshi should be the same.

"I'm sure he'll be okay, Pikachu" she tries to encourage me but her face shows her worry. I really want to be with Satoshi right now.

**End of Chapter Two**

**Thank you for reading, reviews are appreciated**

**Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter One**

CrushFruits, Hybrid of Fate, Nami,

**AN2: **

I don't judge people until they do anything to me. I think there is too much hate in the world. I actually don't really care about what people do (as far as small trivial things) unless it hurts me or someone I care about so that's what forms my opinion of you. I'm sorry if that sounds offensive.

I am happy people told me about some of the people to block though and showed me examples of those people (in PM to me)


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

_It's strange speaking to Pikachu and having him respond. I mean, since he's a close friend of mine – despite being a Pokemon – I want to speak with him but it's strange. Over time, Pikachu managed to learn some words from just being around us but he could only make a combination of noises, now we understand one another. _

"_Hey, buddy" I smile at him and he tilts his head to the side, watching me. "You want to get some food?" I ask and I scratch him behind the ear._

"_Food?" he squeaks back and I laugh. I guess we don't need to eat anymore. The purpose of eating food is to sustain life and neither one of us is alive any longer. It just seems a normal thing to do, to journey and get tired and feel hungry but I don't feel tired anymore and it doesn't feel difficult. It feels natural as if we've been on this same journey forever._

"_Yeah, what am I thinking," I laugh before patting my shoulder. "You want a ride?"_

_Pikachu scurries up my arm and settles down on my shoulder, giving a soft noise of happiness. I walk forwards before seeing a food stand. Amazing. There really are food stands up here but I don't have any money. That's unfair. Are some people buried with their money so they can go to places like these?_

_I run forward and see food appear in front of me. There are all kinds of dishes here, some of my favorites and a large bottle of ketchup only a fraction smaller than Pikachu. Pikachu jumps down and starts hugging the ketchup excitedly._

"_You want some help there, buddy?" I ask and Pikachu shakes his head._

"_No, I've got it," he tells me before taking the cap off with his paws and licking it happily. He's always loved ketchup. I pick up a fork and start eating. It still tastes satisfying even though it's not going to provide any health benefit. It's just a little sad that I'm not eating with those I love around me but at least I've got Pikachu._

…..

…..

I look to see Mom there pacing and the doctor comes up to her, I tilt my head watching. This isn't a Joy. Usually it's Nurse Joy that comes to give Pokemon their medicine and so shouldn't she be doing the same for Satoshi as well. He just needs some potions or berries or something. I know that he's a larger creature but he's smaller than an Onyx and a Dragonite and those can both be healed easily.

Even Snorlax can be healed easily and Satoshi is much much smaller than a Snorlax. It doesn't make much sense to me. "He's asking for Pikachu," the doctor says and Mom turns to me before approaching me. I wonder if she's going to take me to Satoshi.

"Come on, let's go see how he's doing," Mom tells me and she picks me up in her arms, giving me a hug. I manage to yank out a full heal with my paws and she follows the doctor to the room where Satoshi is. As the doctor leads Mom into the room, I scramble down and see Satoshi is hooked up to different machines. I don't really know what type Satoshi is but I don't think that he's an electric type and those machines usually help electric types.

"How are you feeling, ho—honey," Mom says and I see tears in her eyes. It's sad to see Satoshi taken down with a direct hit but the full heal should do him some good.

"I'm feeling okay," he says before turning to me, his eyes focusing on me with a sadness but also a need. He needs me to be there with him.

"Pikapi!" I yell as I gently jump up onto the bed and he pulls me to his lap. I snuggle up to his warm chest and he puts his hand on my head with a goofy smile before ruffling my fur. "Pikapi!" I sigh as I let his heart remind me that he's still here. I still have my friend with me.

"Darling, are you sure that you're feeling all right?" Mom asks him and he shakes his head. Of course. He just got revived after a battle. I don't like being revived after a battle either, I feel all woozy and disoriented. Still, Satoshi will be happy when he's allowed to take his medicine.

I jump down again and rush to where I left it before picking it up in my mouth and taking it to him. He slowly takes it from me and stares at it before his smile turns sad. This is what he needed, right? Don't full heals solve everything?

…..

…..

Of course, Pikachu doesn't understand. He's a Pokemon and Pokemon are different from people. Still, he is aware enough of what is going on to try to hand me an item that makes him feel good. From what the doctors have already explained, this isn't something that can be easily solved. I take the full heal from him. "Sorry, buddy" I tell him, my throat starting to feel dry and my lungs beginning to burn. "Not this time. It's not effective on this type of hurt."

Pikachu tilts his head as he looks at me. I'm not sure how much of that he understood but he's obviously smarter than a lot of people want to give him credit for. "Thank you though. I'm sure we'll play together, real soon, okay?"

I try to smile to him and pretend that the situation is okay. Pokemon are very receptive to the emotions displayed by their trainers. If I act sad or scared then that's going to affect Pikachu. Pikachu relies on me and I don't want to let him down. I don't know if he believes me of is comforted by it but I'm comforted by the idea of him finding peace this way.

"I wouldn't advise much playing for the next week," the doctor says and I know that they have my health in mind but I wish they wouldn't say such things when I'm with Pikachu. Maybe he's just a Pokemon but I feel that he understands everything and I don't want to worry him or make him worried about us not training together.

"Right," Mom says and she finally looks energetic. I rub Pikachu behind his ears and put the full heal on the counter next to me. "Well we'll fight this and we'll beat this, I meant there are more tests that you can do, right?" she asks the doctors and I hate to worry her.

In all honesty, I think that medicine is really the only way of getting back on my feet and I'm praying to any god Pokemon out there that when the test returns it doesn't say I have something like leukemia or another cancer. I'm supposed to be a young trainer wanting to be a Pokemon master. I need to develop my skills. I don't even know how this could have happened.

"Is there a ball or something around here?" I ask and the doctor looks at me sadly but confused. I'm honestly surprised about the confusion, I just want to entertain my Pikachu. Since Pikachu fears going into his Pokeball we've always been together. That has been important for our friendship.

"I'll go find one, sweetie," Mom says and leaves the room. The doctor readjusts my IV bag and I try to soothe Pikachu. The pain still hurts even with the drugs that are making their way through my veins. I want to do my best for him though.

As I sit there, I see my two earliest companions rushing to the door, "He-Hey," I choke as I see the nervousness that both of them have. Pikachu turns to them and his ear twitches.

"So, are you feeling okay?" Takeshi asks and I see that in the glimmer of his eyes, he's concerned about me. Kasumi is quiet. Surely she knows how I feel about her, how I've always felt about her. I try to laugh to hide the pain that I have and also to divert their attention away from the fear I'm feeling.

"What do they think it is?" Kasumi asks and I pause before pulling Pikachu tight. "Is it bad?"

…

…

"They think it's Lugia," Satoshi says as he holds me to his warm chest. I blink. I don't remember seeing a Lugia but could I have missed it. I could have been distracted by an apple or something. I look at him confused and then I hear Kasumi start to cry and Takeshi looks horrified by the idea of a Lugia. Seriously, we've seen some weird Pokemon on our travels.

"Are you sure?" Kasumi asks, "Satoshi, I never…I never really…"

"Don't feel responsible for this," Satoshi tells her and Takeshi is struggling as well. He walks over to the wall and places a hand on it. I watch the two of them. Were they fans of Lugia? Why don't I remember meeting Lugia recently? "It's just…it just happens."

"I…I really…" Kasumi struggles. "I have…we need to spend some time together whilst we can," she tells Satoshi energetically and then scratches me under my chin. It feels good. I see Satoshi look at her and wonder what she meant by whilst they can. Play time can go on forever as long as you don't say goodbye.

"We can beat this," Takeshi finally says as he turns around. "It's not impossible to beat. In fact in breeding, there are a lot of different ointments that you can make if you use Pokemon. I'll try to go to some labs, see if there's been any tests proved. I mean, we have access to Pokemon who are good for health reasons."

Kasumi nods. "How about it, Pikachu? We'll help Satoshi beat this!"

I smile as I try to nuzzle Satoshi again, "Pikapi! Pikapi!" I try to get his attention and he nods solemnly. I don't know what a Lugia has to do with this but sometimes pain goes away in time and that's what I think will happen here. He laughs as he holds me close to him with one hand under my butt and the other cradling my head as if I were a baby.

"Thanks guys," he whispers and I see the pain on everyone's face. I don't understand what Lugia did to cause this but I want to do anything in my power to keep Satoshi smiling.

**End of Chapter Three**

**Thank you for reading, reviews are appreciated**

**Thank you to **Nami** for reviewing Chapter Two**

**The jokes were actually for old fanfics that I wrote when I was a kid (like eight or nine) but I decided to focus on more serious subject matter in this chapter. Please let me know if you want more humor and fluff or you prefer the dark moments. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

"Should he be getting out of the hospital this early?" I hear Kasumi ask and I feel guilty. I think that I've liked her ever since she was scared of that Caterpie so many years ago. She always seemed so passionate about her Pokemon and I tried so hard to not listen to my heart. My affection really started to pull at me when Togepi hatched and I saw the love and care that she gave to her Pokemon. It made me trust her with the care of my own. I hope that she and Professor Oak can take care of the friends I've made.

"I'm not sure but I just want him home," Mom replies and I feel too exhausted to argue with them.

My body is sick. I've seen my Pokemon undergo some serious injuries so maybe this is my punishment for pushing them to their limits. Maybe I never really considered the feelings of my Pokemon as much as I did. I just hope that they would want to take as much care of me as I always did for them. I cough and my eyes open. There's a pain behind them but it's not as if my sickness just developed whilst I was sleeping.

"Hi, sweetie," Mom says as she comes over to me and pushes my hair back, smoothing it as if I'm a kid again. I'm not really the child that I started out as when I travelled. I've grown and matured since then. Mom has red puffy eyes meaning that she's been crying. I guess this is the first time she's cried so much since Dad didn't return.

"Hey," I breathe out and feel something warm nuzzling into my side. I put my hand out and pet Pikachu's back as he sleeps, the blanket covering me wrapped in his tiny paws. I slowly guide myself up and see that Kasumi is attempting to avoid eye contact with me. Is she disgusted by my sickness? Is she going to say that I'm pathetic and not worthy of her friendship. No. She wouldn't say that. She's stubborn and somewhat judgmental and she can cry too much when faced with bugs but she's not a bad person by any definition of the word.

"Kasumi," I say and she rubs at her eyes fiercely. She's been crying as well.

"You need to take better care to be organized, you know," she scolds me. "I mean. If you looked in your bag, then you would never know what's in there. Your mother had to open it and how many potions do you need? Why can't you just go to a Poke center? If you had a bike then -"

"You didn't really want that bike did you?" I ask, my throat is incredibly dry and I see Kasumi's back straighten. She pushes a hand through her hair. "You wanted to journey around with the -"

"I said I wanted the bike," she says quickly and I pause. Her voice is showing how much pain she's truly feeling and I feel guilty. I didn't want to put her through this. I just wanted to talk to her. I guess that if she was in my position, I'd be scared of her getting hurt and I wonder if it would have dawned on me how much I love her if the situation was reversed. Most likely.

"Do you have to leave?" I ask her and her back straightens.

"What?" she asks slowly. She sniffs, her back shaking despite how she is standing alert. I feel as if I've broken her. I'm the one in the hospital bed and yet she's enduring so much hurt of her own. "What are you talking about?" she says as she brings her wrist up to her eyes and I feel self-conscious. It's as if I'm my own Butterfly who is struggling to express his passion for the female he fell for. Is this how love is supposed to be?

"I mean, if there's something more important than -" I continue, trying to explain and she turns to me. Her eyes are red with tears but she looks angry. I feel Pikachu waking up next to me.

"Listen Satoshi!" she yells and I sit back, surprised. Mom has also turned to her with widened eyes. "I don't want to leave this room until you're better! You scared me! You're still scaring me! I mean, maybe you think you don't need me but I need to make sure you're okay and I'm sorry if you have a problem with that!"

I pause looking at her. "I don't have a problem with that," I reply and she turns to me.

"You're not allowed to die," she says before turning away with tears in her eyes. I don't want to die either but I don't want her to be disappointed at things outside of my control. This is more than fighting back against Team Rocket. This is a more serious problem then that and I have no experience on how to deal with it.

…

…

_It's warm and happy and safe to have Satoshi with me. Even if there was no ketchup available to me, it wouldn't matter because I can be with him in safety and happiness. Death always seemed like an unknown to both man and Pokemon but I'm so lucky that I was able to stay together with Satoshi. "Yummy," I squeak as Satoshi crouches down next to me._

"_Really? I'm glad, buddy," he says and looks around. I feel sad that we're alone for right now. I've always been friends with all the Pokemon who have accompanied us on our journeys but we're the only ones here now. Still, who could ever be lonely when you're with your best friend? _

"_I'm tired," I yawn and Satoshi scratches the top of my head._

"_I guess we get to sleep as much as we want now," he tells me and I yawn, stretching out. Somehow I don't feel tired but yawns feel natural to me and sleep is for fun. I've always loved being able to take a nap when we've stopped on our journey. _

"_Are you tired?" I yawn as I reach out my paw and manage to touch Satoshi's hand, he gently holds my paw and then picks me up in his arms, cradling me as a human mother does to her child. I find it easy to sleep as he sways me from side to side. This is heaven. Being in Satoshi's arms again is like a paradise. I can go to sleep knowing that he's not going to be in pain any longer. _

_I yawn and snuggle close to him. _

"_I've got you buddy," he tells me and I trust him entirely. I'm safe here. He's not someone who would refuse me my safety and his protection. I yawn again and he smiles gently. I can go to sleep seeing him happy again._

…

…

_It's comforting that I can speak with Pikachu and that he's not talking down to me like a wise old sage. He's speaking in a way that I always thought he would if he were ever given a voice. I hold him close to my chest as he falls asleep. It's funny. For the first time in a long time, I don't feel sleepy and I don't fele pain. It's good to feel this way again despite knowing that I won't see those I love for a long time. _

_I grab the ketchup bottle and put it in a bag that's quite near me so that I can carry it. However, as I take a few steps forward, I see something appear before me and I look up. There's a Marowak there. It's wearing some kind of stone around its neck that I haven't seen before. Probably not something that you can pick up at a Pokemart or even a department store._

"_Hi," I say weakly, "I'm sorry. We took some food," I tell the Pokemon wondering if it can talk in the same way that Pikachu did. _

"_Do you want to go back to the world of the living?" the ground-type Pokemon says and I turn to Pikachu. I shake my head again. As much as I am going to miss my friends and my mom, I'm not ready to endure that pain I went through again. There's a reason that I died. I only hope that Pikachu has more happiness with me than he would if he had remained with Kasumi. I know she would have taken as much care of him as I do. _

"_I'm okay," I tell them and smile to Pikachu. I push his head to my shoulder. I can't feel any weight from him but I know that he's alive. It's just that things like the need for sleep, the heaviness, the feeling of pain, that isn't something that exists in this realm. _

"_Even if there was no pain and you didn't have to be separated from your loved ones," the Marowak asks and I pause. I don't think that such a thing is possible. I died from a long illness. It was my time to die but Pikachu wanted to be with me so badly. I have to accept my fate._

"_I don't think that it's something worth considering," I argue with the Pokemon as I try to walk forwards. If this Marowak doesn't want to be repaid for the items which we took then I can't help him. I just want to go to wherever Pikachu and I are supposed to go. Looking back on the past, on the world of the living wouldn't help me._

"_I can have a vessel prepared," the Marowak follows me and I sigh. Can't they hear the words that I'm saying? "Don't you want to go back…not even one more time?"_

…..

…..

I see Satoshi sleeping in his bed in the house he grew up in. This is home for him and he is home for me. He never made me suffer by keeping me in my Pokeball, I never even had to sleep in there. Still, it seems all he has done for the past few days is sleep. I look at him from where I'm curled up on his wheelchair. Satoshi doesn't like using it. He says he's not disabled and he's not hurt. Yet, everyone is telling me that he's hurt very badly.

I don't like it. All of this sadness. Why can't Satoshi get checked out by the nurses. They should just give him an antidote and then all the pain would be gone. As Satoshi sleeps, I hear the door open very quietly and then see Takeshi walk in. He places a bag at the side of the room and then watches Satoshi sleeping. He turns to me and sees me watching him.

"Is it bad that I consider him my little brother?" Takeshi asks in a whisper. Everyone has been so respectful of Satoshi's healing but he never seems to get any better. It's confusing and annoying. I just want to be with my trainer and go out and explore the world. I look at him and blink, tilting my head to the side. He picks me up gently and holds me to his chest.

"We'll help him get better, won't we, Pikachu?" he asks and I nod.

He holds me in a way so I can push my face into his warm chest. For some reason, I feel like crying. Is that wrong? Satoshi doesn't need me to cry, does he?

**End of Chapter Four**

**Thank you for reading, reviews are appreciated**

Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Three

EmaBixx


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